Miami International Airport is shutting down one of its
terminals for parts of this weekend because of a shortage of
available screeners at security checkpoints.

“As a precautionary measure due to uncertainties created by the
lapse in federal government funding, some passengers at Miami
International Airport may experience changes to their security
checkpoint and departure gate this weekend,” the
airport announced on its website.

This includes the planned shutdown of Concourse G after 1 p.m.
on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. The terminal and its 15 gates will
reopen each morning.

Concourse G, which serves several airlines including United,
will have its flights relocated to either Concourse F or Concourse
H.

“We do not expect any operational impact as we have arranged to
fully utilize alternate gates for flights originally scheduled out
of Terminal G,” a United Airlines representative said in a
statement to Business Insider.

Miami International Airport was not immediately available for
comment.

An airport spokesman, Greg Chin, told
the Miami Herald on Thursday, however, that federal screeners
were calling in sick at double the normal rate and that managers of
the Transportation Security Administration, which runs the
checkpoint security, weren’t sure whether they’d be able to operate
all of the airport’s checkpoints at normal hours.

“In an effort to optimize resources without degrading screening
and security effectiveness, where it is feasible, TSA is working
with key stakeholders and industry partners, and may explore
efforts to consolidate officers and operations,” a TSA
representative told Business Insider in a statement.

The person added that the TSA experienced a 5.1% unscheduled
call-out rate on Thursday, up from 3.3% on the same day in
2018.

The TSA workers’ union president, Hydrick Thomas, has said
workers are calling out at higher rates because of financial
hardship.

TSA screeners are among the federal employees who have been
working unpaid since the US government shutdown began on December
22. Even though the workers are eligible to receive back pay once
the shutdown is over, many live paycheck to paycheck and are
suffering financially.

“Every day I’m getting calls from my members about their extreme
financial hardships and need for a paycheck,”
Thomas said in a post on the union’s website. “Some of them
have already quit and many are considering quitting the federal
workforce because of this shutdown.

“The loss of officers, while we’re already shorthanded, will
create a massive security risk for American travelers since we
don’t have enough trainees in the pipeline or the ability to
process new hires.”

Unions, aviation trade groups, and politicians from both sides
of the aisle held a rally in Washington, DC, on Thursday urging
political leaders to bring the shutdown to an end.